Hopple



T. YOUNG May 5, 1925.

HOPPLE Filed Oct. 24, 1924 gwventoz I ll) Patented May 5, 1925.

rArnn-r HGPPLE;

Application filed flctobar 2 1-, 1924:. Serial No. 745,579.

To all whom may concern Be it known; that I, Trrnononn forms, a citizen of the United States, residing at town of Waverly, St. Ilegis Falls, in the county of Franklin and, State ofjhlew York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Hopples, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for re straining the movements of animals, for example, of cows while being milked. These devices are known as hopples or anti-kicking devices and many have been proposed and patented, but, as far as I am aware, they have usually proved too clumsy or complicated to be widely adopted.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of this character which will be cheap, simple, yet efiicient for the purpose in View, and one which is readily applicable and adjustable to various sizes of animals.

It consists, broadly, in a pair of straps to encircle the front legs, a chain, or other flexible connection, connected to said straps and passing through an eye on a connector member, a chain running from said memher to, another connector member to which it is adjustably connected, a pair of shackles adapted to it on the hind legs of the animal, a chain connecting said shackles and a short chain passed through an eye on said second connector member and having hooks at its ends by-which it is adjustably connected to the chain connecting the shackles.

The device is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which,

Figure 1 is a plan view of the device as applied to an animal;

Figure 2 is a central line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a detail perspective view of one of the shackles for the hind legs, and

Figure 1- is a cross section of one of the connector plates.

In. these views, 1 and 2 are the straps for the front legs 20, each strap being provided with an ordinary buckle 3, and *arrying a metal loop l, permanently secured to it. The ends of a flexible connection, prefe ably a chain 5, are secured to said loops 1, and said chain passes freely through an eye 6 formed on one end of a small plate or connector member 8 by curling said end over, as shown in Fig. 2. The other end of said plate 8, is provided with a hole 9, in which i aste ed e e d. of a 1 e her sectional view on the end of'wl'iich is secured adj ustably in a keyhole slot11 in another plate orconnector member 12, the rear end of which is also curled over to form an eye 13. It will be understood that any desired link-of the chain 10 can be passed through the narrow' portion of the slot 11, thereby providing means for adjusting the effective length of said chain, in other words, the distance be tween the members 8 and 12 to adapt the device for animals of various sizes. The end link of the chain 10 may be provided with a bent wire 19 to prevent complete disengagement of the chain from the plate, as shown in Fig: 4:.

Through the eye 13 is freely passed a chain 7, the ends of which carry hooks 23, by means of which they are detachably connected to links of a chain 18, to the ends of which are connected a pair of hook shaped shackles lt and 15, adapted to fit over the rearlegs 21 of the animal above the back joints, as shown in Figure 1.

I have shown the shackle 14: as having a shorter shank than the shackle 15, and the end of the chain-18 as permanently secured in a hole 16 in the shank of the shackle 1d, while the shank of the other shackle 15 is shown as having a key-hole slot 17, like that of plate 12, in which the other end of the chain 18 is adjustably fastened. This end of this chain 18 may carry a stop wire 22, like the stop wire 19 of chain 10. The shackles 14 and 15, with the chain 18 may be used alone to prevent undue spreading of the hind legs of the cow while being milked. i

It will be seen that thevarious adjustments described enable my improved hopple to be fitted to animals of very different sizes, and that, while it permits a certain amount of leg movement, it prevents kicking and restrains the animal effectively while being milked.

In the claims, I use the word chain for convenience, but other flexible connections may be used, if desired.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: v

1. A hopple or anti-kicking device, com prising adjustable straps for the front legs, loops secured to said straps, a chain having its ends secured in said loops, a connector member having an eye through which said chain is passed, a second connector member having an eye and a keyhole slot, a second chain secured to said first member and ad justably engaged in said slot of the second. member, a pair 01": hook shackles for the hind legs, one of said shackles having a key-hole slot, a third chain having one end engaged in said slot of one shackle and the other end secured to the other shackle, and a fourth chain passed through said eye of said second member and detaehably connected to said third chain.

2. A hopple 0r anti-kicking device, comprising straps for the front legs, hook shackles for the hind legs, intermediate members each having an eye, a chain secured to 11', rnnononn YOUNG.

mark Vitnesses to mark:

HUGH GARULsKn, LESLIE M. SAUNDERS. 

